Homes On The Market Should Be Getting Energy Audits

For $99, you can add an energy audit to the inspection of your possible new home or to the home that you’re selling. Whether you’re buying or selling, having an energy audit done on the home can save buyers thousands of dollars in future operating costs or identify just how efficient the home is. Energy audits do this by pinpointing features of the house that need corrections that would improve the energy efficiency of the home. By finding these features, it can let you know that the home is either and energy guzzler or a sustainable home.

Energy audits have been around for quite some time now but they are still not utilized in the real estate field. According to HERS, almost all energy audits are done on new homes instead of existing/resold homes. This is unfortunate because knowing the energy status of a home can affect the overall pricing of the home. After having an audit completed many buyers say: lower the price, fix the problems or I’m not buying. But as a seller, showing that you have an efficient home can be a selling point.

So, in a world where energy efficiency is a growing concern, where energy costs are high on the list of ongoing expenses, and where energy upgrades pay for themselves in bill savings, why aren’t more energy audits performed on houses being sold? Neither buyers nor sellers ask! Sellers want to avoid giving purchasers a reason to make lower offers or demand repairs before closing and buyers may simply not know that there’s another option. It isn’t recommended to most buyers.

On the contrary to what most think though, having an energy audit done on the home, or making energy upgrades to the home, can help sell houses. If a home is proven to be more energy efficient it’s more desirable and if it isn’t, buyers feel comfortable in knowing what exactly they’re going to get.

Green ID is one of the top energy auditors in Arizona. We offer competent, experienced, certified auditors and a comprehensive report once the audit is completed. You can find Green ID at YourGreenID.com or by contacting us at (602) 926-1650.

Comfort & Payback in Your Home

Making green upgrades to your home can majorly increase your comfort. Unfortunately, comfort and quick paybacks don’t always go hand in hand. Upgrades like window replacements, garage insulation and increasing insulation levels to assure they’re up to the R-38 standard, are all upgrades where the most cost effective solution may not align with your lifestyle conditions. For example, replacing single pane windows in good condition is not cost-effective but the price paid for one south or west-facing window may be well worth the cost if it cools down a hot office or reduces traffic noise at night. It’s clear that in some situations the lifestyle conditions may outweigh the cost or payback of upgrades.

Insulation changes are another popular upgrade that homeowners choose to make. Adding insulation can often times give homeowners greater temperature control in their home but not every home is the same in terms of insulation. If a home has already met a R-38 Energy Star standard adding more may still save you money on utilities but only by a small margin opposed to adding insulation to an aged home where the insulation has sank. In the later example the upgrade would most likely save the home owners much more on their utility bills. Often the more important issue is finding out how the insulation installed.  A 5% defect in the installation will cut the R-value (its effectiveness) by 50%.

All considerations for upgrades can be discussed with an energy auditor who will give you their professional and unbiased opinion of the most cost effective upgrades you can be making in your home. It’s important to get a professional opinion when making investments that could save you money and increase your comfort. 

Can I Use Spray Foam Insulation In My Cement Block Home?

So you’ve heard about spray foam insulation, but you live in a block home. This makes you wonder, is it even possible to have spray foam in a cement block home? What about in an older home?
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The answer is YES!

The ideal way to install spray foam insulation in a cement block home is during construction. This allows our professional installers direct access to the empty concrete block cells that will be filled with the spray foam product.

However, even after construction is finished, or during a remodel or retrofit of an older home, we can get foam insulation into a block wall by drilling a series of holes near the top of the wall and filling the wall one vertical cell at a time.

Working from the inside face (or the surface most likely to be covered with a finish), contractors drill 5/8-inch or 7/8-inch holes into the face of the blocks about 4 feet up from the floor to fit an injection tube running from a “mixer” that combines a non-toxic liquid resin, a foaming agent, and air.

Once the foam starts to seep through the injection holes (indicating a full cavity encompassing several blocks), the process is repeated along the length of the wall every 4 feet, and then again along the top of the wall about a foot short of its full height.
Here is how that works: as one cell fills up, the foam will start to exit from the hole in the adjoining cell, signaling the installer to move the hose to the next cell and seal the hole that was just filled. One vertical cell is filled at a time, until the entire block wall is full of foam insulation.

Another option would be to fur out an interior wall with wood or steel studs and spray the foam directly into place over the face of the block wall and in between the studs. Be advised, this option would imply added material costs in the form of studs, sheetrock, etc…and it would result in a slight – although measurable – loss of interior square footage.

These are only two examples of how spray foam insulation can be retro-fitted to existing concrete structures. Spray foam is a highly adaptable material, and it can be used on nearly any project.

Here at Green ID, we have the needed experience and expertise to assist you with all of your insulation needs!

If you have any questions or concerns about whether our spray foam products can be used at your home, call us at (602) 926-1650.

There’s a huge attraction toward solar panels for a reason. The source of “free energy” has been growing in popularity because solar power is a great way to reduce not only your energy bills but also your carbon footprint. Although this energy alternative is definitely something to keep in mind, it’s important to fully consider this investment. Rebates are available for solar through SRP and APS, but the cost alone for having solar installed on your home can cost owners up to $9 per watt, meaning that a 5,000 W system could run you $35,000, and that’s just for installation!

​The truth is that, although solar energy use is a great advancement on homes and definitely something to consider, there are more cost effective methods to cutting down your carbon footprint and saving money on your energy bill.

Cutting down energy consumption is an important first step whether you decide to invest in solar power for your home or not.  At Green ID, we say reduce before you produce.  Reducing your energy use by keeping warmed and conditioned air inside through correct insulation of the walls and roof, and also by making sure your heating and cooling systems are working properly. This will put you in a much better position to use renewable energy if you choose to go that route. This is because by reducing your energy consumption, your home will require a smaller PV system.  Cutting down your energy consumption before the instillation of solar panels will not only lower your current energy bills, but also will lower your overall cost of installing and purchasing solar panels because you will require a smaller unit.  For each kW you reduce could save you about $500 upfront cost when investing in solar panels.

Home energy audits are the best way to learn where your whole home can save on energy.  You wouldn’t get a heart transplant without first making sure you absolutely needed one and in the same way, a home energy audit would be the diagnostic testing of your home. Will solar energy help reduce your energy bills no matter what? Yes, of course it will, but putting solar panels on an inefficient home is like driving a Prius with a hole in the gas tank!

The Department of Energy put together a video explaining what an energy audit includes, and you can also view a checklist of what an energy audit includes here.

Although solar panels may be the right move for you and your home, first consider that it may not be the right first move. It’s important to make improvements on what you already have existing so that you’re cutting back on energy consumption and cost both initially and long term.

http://www.greenintegrateddesign.com/blog/alternatives-to-solar-panels

Arizona Trane Current Rebate Promotions

Trane kicked off their Fall promotion offer. From now until November 15th 2016 you can get up to a $2000 instant rebate on trade-in on a qualifying purchase of a new Trane system or 0% APR specials! The promotional period is a great to to replace your old system at your own convenience, not when the unit stops working during the hottest part of the day. Air conditioners in Phoenix tend to break down in the middle of the summer and air conditioning companies tend to charge more on emergency calls.

A proper analysis of your home is the first step. Performing a load calculation and energy audit and finding issues and concerns you have allows us to design a system together that will improve comfort, energy bills and peace of mind.





Trane Current Rebate Promotion Details

1. Choose a complete heating and air conditioning system from Green ID.

2. We will electronically enter your information and SEER for units purchased into the Big Game contest site. ​

3. Then just “scratch” to reveal your savings!

To determine the appropriate trade-in allowance, Green ID will help determine specific qualifying systems tailored for your needs. Then, visit a secure online web address, www.tranebiggame.com, to electronically scratch and win. Savings will be revealed in one of the following categories:

• $25 off per SEER 
• $50 off per SEER 
• $75 off per SEER 
• $100 off per SEER 

​Your rebates will come off the top of your AC unit cost and we will submit all the paperwork on the back end. The Trane rebate savings are calculated by multiplying the SEER rating of your unit with the dollar amount of your scratch-off. For example: If you’re purchasing a unit with a SEER rating of 16 and you scratch off $75, your rebate. Savings are calculated by multiplying the SEER rating of your unit with the dollar amount of your scratch-off. For example: If you’re purchasing a unit with a SEER rating of 16 and you scratch off $75, your rebate will be $1,200 (16 x $75 = $1,200).

We are also offering 1,000 sq ft of blown R19 insulation to add on to Trane's promotion to help make your home even more energy efficient until the end of November.

0% Financing Available

0% financing for 48 months is available for qualifying Trane variable speed units or Green ID offers alternative financing for homeowners purchasing new AC systems.

There are incredible advancements in air conditioning in just the last few years. Read about the Trane XVi20 variable speed systems. If you notice rooms that are hard to cool in the summer or high energy bills, this is a great time to take advantage of Trane's specials and make your home comfortable and energy efficient. ​

Call Green ID at 602-926-1650 today to lock in your Trane rebates.